Category: TripWriteUp
Ben Delatour Scout Ranch
By: Tom Finley
Scout Attendees:
Cooper P. (SPL)
Bjorn B. (ASPL)
Patrick H.
Nik F.
Colin F.
Carter T.
Liam G.
Lex S.
Carter G.
Zoehn B.
Zoe R.
Corri P.
Adult Attendees:
Tom Finley
Cynde Rothenberger
Daniel Burkard
Day 1 6/22/2024
We started our trip meeting at the church at 11:00 am. After loading the trailer and saying our goodbyes, we were on the road by 11:40am. After encountering some heavy traffic on I-25, we finally arrived at camp around 2:20 pm. We were greeted by our Troop Guide for the week Rockafeller. Daniel pulled the trailer up to our assigned campsite while the rest of the troop hiked up to our campsite, about ¾ of a mile. Along the way, Rockefeller took us to all the program areas, and we got to meet all the program directors.
After dinner, we got settled into our campsite and tents before heading to the amphitheater for the opening campfire where the camp staff put on a great show to welcome everyone to camp.
Day 2 6/23/2024
The first full day of camp started with Cooper playing “Reveille” on his trumpet to wake up the entire camp. After breakfast, the Scouts headed off for their first day of Merit Badges. After Merit Badges were completed, the Scouts enjoyed open program time. A few of the Scouts took advantage of special opportunities provided by the camp. Patrick participated in “Cowboy Action Shooting”. Nik and Bjorn did the Pulp and Paper Merit Badge in the handicraft lodge. Corri and Zoe worked on the Chess Merit Badge. Carter G. went to the Trapper’s Rendezvous area to earn his Totin’ Chip and Firem’n Chit.
At lights out, Cooper played “Taps” on his trumpet to put the camp to bed.
Day 3 6/24/2025
Tuesday started early for Cooper, Bjorn, Patrick and Cynde; they decided to take a sunrise hike to the top of Monster Mountain, so Cooper could play “Reveille” from the top of the mountain. The Troop handling opening flags, asked Cooper to assist with the flag ceremony by playing his trumpet. Throughout the day, the Scouts finished their first round of Merit Badges.
The evening activity for the camp was their famous Chuckwagon dinner and Hoedown. We were served a chili dinner out of the back of a historical chuckwagon. After dinner, there was line dancing, branding, lassoing, horseshoes, Old West Gear available for photos, and tug-o-war. The Scouts had a great time line dancing, and most of the Troop stayed until they turned off the music.
Once back at camp, Cooper again put the camp to bed by playing “Taps” on his trumpet.
Day 4 6/25/2025
Wednesday was the day of the Polar Plunge. Cooper, Bjorn, Patrick, and Cynde all got up early to jump in the lake. Zoe, Corri and Tom also went down to the lake, to watch and take pictures. After breakfast most Scouts started on their second round of Merit Badges. Instead of working on a Merit Badge during the morning session, Nik participated in ATV riding.
At lunch our Troop volunteered to lead the song, and the Scouts sang the “Bazooka Bubble Gum” song for the whole camp.
After dinner was the Troop campfire where all the Troops performed songs and skits for the entire camp. Our Troop performed the “Bear” song and the “New York Mugging” skit.
After the campfire, the entire Troop went on the Honor Trail hike where we all learned a deeper understanding of the Scout Law. For completing the Honor Trail hike, every member of the Troop received an upside down horseshoe pin that can be worn on the uniform. When we got back to camp, the hike led to a discussion amongst the Scout and Adults about what the Scout Law means to us and how we apply it in our lives. For me this was the highlight of the camp.
Day 5 6/26/2025
Just like on Tuesday, Cooper, Bjorn, Patrick and Cynde took a sunrise hike to the top of Monster Mountain, so Cooper could play “Reveille” from the top of the mountain.
At breakfast our Troop won the Spirit Stick by performing a version of “The Macarena” dance. Throughout the day, Scouts finished up the second round of Merit Badges. Cynde jumped in to teach Fish and Wildlife Management when the instructor for that class had to go to the emergency room. Zoehn caught a fish and cooked it and had it for dinner as part of Fly Fishing merit badge.
The Adults got a special steak dinner after regular dinner. The steak dinner is a way to recognize the Adults that take a week out of their lives to bring Scouts to camp.
Thursday is also the Night Hike, where all Adults and Scouts are welcomed to hike up Monster Mountain…with the option to sleep at the top. Cooper, Bjorn, Patrick, Lex, Liam, Zoe, and Carter G. all went on the hike. Zoe, Lex, Liam and Carter G. all chose to sleep at the top.
After the Night Hike, Patrick, Corri, Bjorn, Cooper, Carter T., and Cynde went to the Stargazing party.
Day 6 6/27/2025
On Friday, it was our Troop’s turn to lead the morning flag ceremony. Cooper played the trumpet, while Nik called the flag color guard. Patrick, Bjorn, Carter G., Lex, Liam and Carter T. all helped raise the flags. After the flag ceremony, our Troop won the Spirit Stick for a second day in a row with an Old West themed skit. Then without any prompting from the Adults, the Scouts decided to give the Spirit Stick to a smaller Troop that our Scouts befriended during the week. Those Scouts were ecstatic to have the Spirit Stick.
After breakfast all the Scouts scattered all around camp for open program time.
Corri, Carter G and Bjorns finished up their Space Exploration Merit Badge by firing rockets!
The afternoon activity in camp was the BDSR Rodeo Olympics. The Olympics consisted of Troops competing against each other in Tug-o-War, lassoing, and hobby horse barrel racing. Amazingly our Troop won the BDSR Rodeo Olympics.
The last activity in camp was the closing campfire / award ceremony. Several members of the Troop were recognized during the ceremony.
- Daniel received a Horseshoe for assisting in repairing a fence that broke in the Horsemanship Area.
- Liam, Lex, Cooper, Bjorn and Carter T. all got a loopie from the Rifle instructor.
- Corri, Zoe and Cooper all got a loopie from the Archery instructor.
- Zoehn, Carter, Patrick and Daniel all got a loopie from the Shotgun instructor.
- Lex, Liam and Zoe were all recognized for sleeping on top of Monster Mountain without a sleeping bag.
- Daniel, Cynde and Tom all were awarded the “Test of Grit” award for completing the adult Merit Badge.
- The Troop was awarded a plaque for winning the Rodeo Olympics.
- The Troop was also given the Spirit Stick to take home because we displayed the best Scout Spirit for the entire week.
- The Troop was awarded the Bob Surtivant Award for our outstanding performance throughout the entire week at camp in all facets of Scouting.
Day 7 6/28/2025
Cooper woke up the entire camp with “Reveille” at 6:00 am. Once we were awake, we all packed up our tents, and cleaned up the campsite. Rockefeller arrived at 7:00 am to check us out. After a quick stop in the dining hall to pick up our breakfast sacks, we hiked down to the parking lot and said goodbye to BDSR.
On our way home we stopped at Buccee’s for some snacks and a group photo with the Bucees truck.
We arrived back at the church by 11:00 am.
What a fantastic week of camp!
Photos are posted at the usual location on the website: https://www.bsatroop640.com/photos/
The troop took part in the 2025 Shootzenfest Weekend, April 25th-27th, at McNeil Scout Ranch at Peaceful Valley. Eight scouts and three adults attended the campout.
The troop mustered up at 5pm on Friday evening to get a head start since the drive takes about an hour and twenty minutes to camp. A big shout out to Patrick H. for stepping up at the very last minute to be the SPL for the campout. This campout was a bit different from most in that all meals were being provided by the camp. We did not have assign a Grub master or any need to purchase any food for the weekend.
Weather was a bit spotty on the way down but nothing to stop these scouts. The Burkard’s were able to arrive ahead of the troop and received our campsite at Ogallala. The campsite was only couple hundred yards from the parking lot, which made set up very nice. Unfortunately, the rain became more steady as the evening went, but all the scouts were able to set camp and did not let the rain interrupt their time. Later in the evening, we joined the camp at Kephart dining hall for cracker barrel.
Saturday morning started out a bit drab. There was heavy fog from the rain overnight, but cleared quickly. By 9am or so, the sun was out and shining. Activities started with breakfast at 7am at the dining hall. Right after breakfast and opening flags, the staff provided all campers a mandatory Safety Briefing. At 8:45am, the walk began to the shooting ranges. The walk was a bit longer than normal. A new Zip Line is being constructed at the camp and we had to walk around the new construction, which added a few minutes more walk.
Shooting activities included shotgun, rifle, black-powder rifle, archery, sporting archery, and tomahawks. The scouts enjoyed a full morning and afternoon of visiting each station and testing their abilities. Ranges temporarily closed for lunch and quick walk back dining hall. The afternoon was a repeat of the morning with all ranges open for shooting. A few of the scouts remained in camp to enjoy some downtime. Adults were encouraged to join in the activities as well. Sporting archery was very challenging but a great time. Dinner was served at 6pm. After dinner there were skits performed by the troops and a raffle drawing to give away door prizes.
Sunday morning began around 6am to break camp. After breaking down most of camp, breakfast was served at the dining hall. Afterwards, we returned to camp, packed the vehicles and drove back to the church.
All scouts had a great time. It was very nice to see our scouts mix together and continue to build relationships. The camp staff was extremely knowledgeable and friendly. They made sure all scouts were safe and had the best time possible.
Thank you to the SPL, Patrick H., for taking on the title and leading the scouts for the weekend.
The Shootzenfest Weekend is an annual event. I cannot recommend this more for the scouts to attend! See you next year!
Scouts:
Jaivon B.
Zaiden B.
Zoehn B.
Caleb G.
Patrick H.
Caleb M.
Quentin M.
Eli S.
Adults:
Dan Burkard
Danny Hanson
Curtis Strous
On the evening of February 7th a patrol of nine scouts from Troop 640 ascended into the snowy darkness of Golden Gate Canyon State Park for a weekend of good, cold fun at the annual Klondike Derby with over 500 other scouts and scouters from the Alpine, Frontier, and Valley Districts of the Greater Colorado Council.
Saturday morning began with delicious and hearty breakfast burritos (no one went hungry this weekend!) and then off to the opening flag ceremony. There was just enough snow overnight for the sleds to slide on the paved roads that had been dry the day before. Next it was off to compete in the Klondike Events.
Yeti Bag Toss
Get the 10 essentials into a bag and then get that bag hung over a high rope strung between two trees, to keep them out of reach of the pesky yeti that were roaming the camp.
Yeti Search
This patrol had to find a person sitting silently in the snow, the catch was that the whole patrol was blinded either by pulled down hats or buckets on their heads.
Stretcher
Make a stretcher from a tarp and two poles, then carry one of your buddies through an obstacle course.
Avalanche Bombing
You get 16 tennis balls, and your goal is to get one of them into a bucket. Unfortunately, the bucket is ten feet away and you have to do it with a tarp. And you can’t get any closer to the bucket. And there was a tennis racket, for some reason. Anyway, it only took this patrol 18 seconds.
Sled Race
Pretty simple, pull your sled with a load (human or baggage) around a loop of campsites as fast as you can. Somehow this patrol talked themselves into a situation where they ended up having to pull their sled with the adult volunteer running the race sitting in it. They were fast. So fast that they tipped the guy out on the first turn. He gave them a chance to re-run the course with one of their own as passenger and they shaved 22 seconds off their time — but not without a couple of minor casualties. Sled racing is a rough and tumble sport.
Obstacle Course
Three members of the patrol were blindfolded and had to be guided through a series of obstacles by shouted instructions from the rest. This mostly involved wriggling on the ground, but that seemed to work.
There was a lunch break here, with plenty of hot dogs generously cooked up by Mr. Hanson.
Lashing Challenge
This three-part challenge required the demonstration of four different knots, tying a rope around a rather large log and dragging it out around a pole and back, and using a two-man crosscut saw to cut a “cookie” off the end of a four-inch log. Note: the so-called cookie was NOT edible. I checked. This patrol completed the challenge in 1min 39s — which earned them a Third Place ribbon for the event.
Fire Starting
All the materials were provided: wood of various sizes and tinder. Each patrol needed to provide an ignition source, and build a fire with flames that lasted at least two minutes. This patrol strategized for a few moments, then broke out the ferro rod and had a fire started in a very respectable 27 seconds.
Orienteering
Each patrol was given a map and sent out on a course to find up to five different waypoint stations. Each station had a custom paper punch to prove you actually found it. This patrol went running through the snow dodging random yeti and stray AOL scouts to find all five stations.
Yeti Ski
Two long boards, four loops of rope tied on each, stick the toes of your boots in the loops and go for an easy graceful glide through the snow with three of your pals. Okay, so it’s not exactly graceful. And it’s more of an awkward shuffle than a glide. And it’s really hard, especially trying to cross a slippery, snow-packed hillside.
Broom Hockey
The problem with broom hockey is the brooms. The ball? It can go all day. The cones marking the goals? Indestructible. But the poor brooms just can’t handle hundreds of vigorous scouts. By the time this patrol got to the event the brooms had been reduced to splinters, so they got to play Broomless Broom Hockey – which is basically soccer in the snow. Still fun though.
At this point, the lure of the Gaga Pit was too compelling to avoid so they played that until it was time for dinner.
As the sun set the campfire was relit and cheeseburgers were griddled to perfection on the Camp Chef, followed by pineapple-upside-down cake baked in a dutch oven.
When Sunday morning dawned the scouts mostly avoided the planned cold cereal in favor of instant oatmeal, while Mr. Hanson made biscuits and gravy for the adults. After packing up it was off to the Scouts Own Service and the awards ceremony where the patrol received their 3rd place ribbon for the Lashing Challenge. Mr. Hileman returned (with donuts!) to help drive us all back home.
Scouts:
Alexander R.
Bjorn B.
Cooper P.
Dalton M.
Elijah W.
Luke H.
Nash W.
Patrick H.
Quentin M.
Adults:
Mr. Hanson
Mr. Prebynski
And Mr. Hileman helped get us all there and back
Photos located at https://www.bsatroop640.com/photos/
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As I re-read the 2024 Ice Climbing Recap, I debated just copying it and changing the dates. So much was similar to our now-annual Ice Climbing adventure – in the best sense! Once again, we had a phenomenal time on this trip, however the weather was quite a bit different, but that didn’t change the outcome at all.
We departed the church around 5:45pm this time and pulled into camp just before 8pm. We quickly checked in and unloaded our trailer to Bunkhouse #4, #5, and #6. We set up camp but decided against fires Friday night and simply retreated to our cabins to enjoy cracker barrel with the temps hovering in the high teens.
After getting up at 6am, we cooked our respective breakfasts; the adults learned that Mr. Bielkiewicz struggles to cook breakfast in the cold – let’s just say that we were fueled by extra “carbon” Saturday. We promptly began the 2nd annual scaling of the beautiful ice wall at Camp A at 8am with the guides recognizing several of us as repeat customers. Once again, the Scouts impressed everyone, including the guides, with their deft abilities to climb the ice. Almost everyone summited at least one route – several were able to summit multiple routes! The lead guide later told me “he can tell when a Troop is prepared and ours was one of the best he’s worked with.” This year there was a steady but light snowfall throughout the climbing and the day started at 7 degrees – but no one was deterred or complained of being too cold. Clearly our boys know what it means to Be Prepared! Check out the amazing photos!
After climbing we quickly cleaned up breakfast and made our way back to the lake where hockey was once again played for several hours while Mr. Naber set up his ice fishing shanty. Snow fell on and off all day, but again we were successful fishing as 10 were snagged this time around, including several large trout and one huge one that Jaivon pulled! Even Mr. Bielkiewicz caught his first fish since the 1980’s (although Andrew did all the hard work). Once the boys were finally tired out from “hockey” (which included avoiding the defensive prowess of Mr. Bahr and Mr. Borstad), we packed up and headed back to camp for dinner.
Each patrol and the adults cooked up great meals – Cheeseburgers, homemade chili mac and dutch-oven cornbread, and pasta carbonara (which the adults made and shared with the climbing leaders) rounded out the menus this weekend. After cleaning up the dishes and site in preparation for another chilly overnight, we got 2 large fires blazing to accommodate all 20+ attendees and everyone stayed warm and outside until it was finally time to retire for the evening to the cozy cabins.
We awoke at 7am Sunday to 10 degree temps and quickly packed our gear, loaded up the trailer and cars, cleaned up camp, and did our Roses and Thorns before heading back home. We didn’t get on the road until around 9:45am which put us back to the church at just past noon. It was amazing to have such a large group have such a good time in spite of the temperatures and frequent snowfall – us adults are really proud of our Scouts and how prepared they are. It just goes to show that when you are prepared, you can have fun in any conditions!
Klondike is up next – should be a breeze for everyone no matter the weather so sign up now!
Here are the attendees:
Zack B. (SPL) (2nd year attending)
Nash W. (2nd year attending)
Andrew N. (2nd year attending)
Damon B. (2nd year attending)
Eli S. (2nd year attending)
Bjorn B. (2nd year attending)
Caleb G.
Jaivon B.
Caleb M.
Quentin M.
Patrick H.
Carter T.
Luke H.
Dalton M.
Jackson D.
Elijah W.
Davis M.
Adults:
Chris Naber (2nd year attending)
Brett Borstad (2nd year attending)
Mike Bielkiewicz (2nd year attending)
Cameron Bahr
The annual trip to Granby Ranch went well this year with 14 scouts and 6 adults attending. The troop left the Nature School at 6:20 and arrived at the tubing hill about 2 hours later. The group tubed for about 90 minutes. Church of the Eternal Hills was gracious enough to let us spend the night in their facility.
Saturday morning, we drove to Granby Ranch to ski. The weather was fantastic on Saturday with clear skies and no wind. This year a large part of the resort was open due to good early season snowfall. Mrs. Mackey offered lessons to any new skiers in the troop and her protégé was all smiles and no broken bones at the end of the afternoon. We left the ski base around 430 and arrived at the Nature School just before 7pm
Thank you to Mr Naber for pulling the troop trailer over some less than idea road conditions.
Scouts in Attendance:
Damon B.
Bjorn B.
Zack B.
Jackson D.
Collin F.
Patrick H.
Nash W.
Davis M.
Dalton M.
Caleb N.
Andrew N.
Carter T.
Ben T.
Elijah W.
Adults:
Grady Bahr
Brett Borstad
Allison Mackey
Garret Mackey
Chris Naber
Jeff Warner
Camp Buffalo Bill
By: Tom Finley
Scout Attendees: Adult Attendees:
Jackson D. (SPL) Tom Finley
Eli S. (ASPL) Chris Naber
Nash W. Todd Prebynski
Aidan S. Curtis Strous
Davis M. Daniel Burkard
Andrew N. Garrett Mackey
Cooper P.
Vince P.
Zaiden B.
Dalton M.
Colin F.
Bjorn B.
Zoehn B.
Carter T.
Day 1 6/22/2024
We started our trip meeting at the church at 9:00 AM. We got all of our equipment and personal camping gear loaded into cars and were departing by about 10:20 AM. Our first stop was for lunch at Sam’s Club in Cheyenne, WY. We then got back on the road and headed to Casper, WY. We stopped at the Flying J Truck Stop for gas and decided to buy Subway sandwiches for dinner. With our sandwiches packed and our fuel tanks full, we drove to our campsite(s) in Boysen State Park.
We were greeted in the campground by a 4 ½ foot bull snake climbing a tree right where we parked! Due to the diligent research and planning of Mr. Strous, we ended up with the best tent sites in the entire Upper Wind River campsite. We had enough room to set all our tents in the same area. After camp was set up, some of the Scouts went swimming in the river, while others explored the area. After it got dark, the Scouts all played Exploding Kittens in the big tent.
Day 2 6/23/2024
We woke up bright and early on Sunday morning. We ate a breakfast of bagels, Pop-Tarts, and granola bars. We broke down camp and were on the road by 8:00 AM. We went straight to the Hot Springs State Park in Thermopolis and arrived before the pools opened. So the Scouts and Adults were able to spend about 30 minutes exploring the area and learning about the Hot Spring. We all had fun crossing the wavy suspension bridge.
At 9:00 AM the Star Plunge Hot Spring pool opened, and we were one of the first in line. The Scouts and adults all enjoyed about 2 hours swimming, soaking, sliding, and jumping in the naturally warm waters. By about 11:30 AM, we were back on the road, headed to Cody, WY. In Cody, we went to McDonald’s for lunch. After lunch, we topped off our fuel tanks and headed to Camp Buffalo Bill (CBB)..
We arrived in camp at about 3:15 PM and were greeted by our Troop Guides Colton and Hank. They gave us a tour of the entire camp and explained everything to us. By the time our tour was done, it was time for our first dinner in camp.
After dinner, Mr. Finley and Jackson went to the Scoutmaster/SPL meeting while everyone else went back to our campsite (Wapiti) and started setting up camp. Immediately after getting camp set up, it was time for the opening campfire, where we all enjoyed skits performed by the staff. After the campfire, we all headed back to camp and were off to bed.
Day 3 6/24/2024
Several Scouts and adults started the day getting up at 5:30 AM, so they could earn the CBB Polar Plunge patch (by jumping in the CBB pond for 4 days).
Bjorn Andrew Vince Jackson
Carter Davis Cooper Colin
Zaiden Mr. Burkard Mr. Mackey Mr. Prebynski
The entire troop then went to breakfast. Our Troop decided to make Monday “crazy hat day”; and thanks to Cooper, almost all the Scouts had witch hats, and we were the talk of camp when we lined up for breakfast. After breakfast, the Scouts headed off to their first day of Merit Badge classes.
After finishing their classes for the day the scouts set about to finish completing their hammock city. They ended up with quite the conglomeration of Hammock with multiple ‘doubledeckers’. The day at camp ended with a “Hot Chocolate Social” where the Scouts and adults got to drink a cup of Hot Chocolate while mingling and getting to know people from other Troops. After the social, we all headed off to bed.
Day 4 6/25/2024
Just like Monday, the same Scouts and adults started the day by jumping in the pond (minus Zaiden who felt sleep was more important) towards earning the Polar Plunge patch. Tuesday was campwide “crazy necktie day”. Mr. Prebynski brought a bag of neckties from home, so everyone in the Troop had a necktie to wear. The Scouts spent their second day in Merit Badge classes. After dinner, the adults helped with dishes in the kitchen. During evening activities Nash, Aidan, and Davis all took part in the “Cowboy Action Shooting”, while Mr. Prebynski learned the basics of blacksmithing. Mr. Finley and Mr. Strous had to make an unscheduled trip into Cody, WY to purchase a new car battery.
Day 5 6/26/2024
The whole Troop got up early and were at breakfast by 6:00 AM so we could maximize our day in Yellowstone National Park. After stopping for a group picture at the sign outside of the park we got in line to go inside. Almost immediately after entering the park(150 feet past the Yellowstone entrance where we pulled over to get our group back together), we were lucky enough to see a Grizzly Bear just on the other side of the river from where we were parked.
After the excitement of the bear wore off, we all headed to Old Faithful. The Scouts were given free time before the eruption and went off to explore the area. We all met back up and watched the eruption. Since there is so much to see, after the eruption, the Scouts were given more free time to explore. We decided to eat our sack lunches before departing Old Faithful.
Next, we headed to the Grand Prismatic Spring where we stopped at the overlook parking lot. On the way to the overlook, we were all able to see multicolored steam rising off the pools which was harder to see the closer you got to the pools. The whole troop decided to hike up to the upper overlook. It was well worth the hike as the views were breathtaking and we were able to take another group photo at the upper overlook with the Prismatic Spring in the background thanks to another park visitor with a phone attached to a long pole. After that, we headed to the Paint Pots and were treated with multi-colored hot springs, bubbling mud pots, and another impressive geyser erupting.
We made a brief impromptu stop at Gibbons Falls and learned about how they built the road there and walked out to see the falls and an expansive view out into the Yellowstone caldera. And with impeccable timing, we were just leaving it began to lightly rain. We then headed to the Norris Geyser Basin and Museum. Most of the Scouts disregarded the rain and explored the basin, while a few Scouts and most of the adults enjoyed the museum. Those who took the walk through the Norris Geyer basin were greeted with some of the most beautiful hot springs we were able to see up close during the entire trip. The boardwalk through the basin went past steam vents, mud pots, geysers, and multi-colored streams populated by thermophiles. (A thermophile is any organism that thrives in a hot environment. To define thermophiles is to literally define an organism as a “heat lover”. The suffix “-phile” means love. – They live in temperatures between 106°F and 252 °F – water boils at 212°F)
We had dinner in Canyon Village, at the cafeteria located there. After dinner, we walked out to Artist Point which has amazing views of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, and the iconic ‘lower falls’ were spectacular! All of the Scouts and Adults got plenty of photographs. As we were leaving Artist Point on our way back to Fishing Bridge, we stopped on the side of the road to watch a herd of buffalo cross right in front of us. All of the Scouts were able to stand in the back of Mr. Burkard’s truck to get a better view while being safe. We all also saw some of the younger bison playing while some of the males were facing off and butting heads.
The last stop of the day for us was the Mud Volcano. This is an area of amazing thermal activity. It was another amazing stop for us to see. There is boiling mud, a heated lake that was formed when one of the features exploded back in the 1920’s creating the area and waves of boiling water coming up/out from underground in another feature. Some of the scouts were also able to see another bear leaving the area.
All of the Scouts and adults were left in awe by the amazing natural features and wildlife (Grizzly Bear, Black Bear, Bison, Elk, Deer, and ) that we were able to see in Yellowstone National Park.
We got back to camp quite late on Wednesday and several scouts decided to sleep in their hammocks.
Day 6 6/27/2024
Just like Monday and Tuesday, several Scouts and adults got up early to earn the polar plunge patch by jumping in the pond (minus Mr, Burkard who opted out based on the Friday forecast). Since there was no camp-wide theme for Thursday, so our Troop planned a “crazy sock day”. It was an eventful day for a couple of Scouts during Merit Badge class time. Andrew caught a trout during his Fly Fishing class. Colin joined the “Dime Club” and earned an NRA Marksman medal during his Rifle Shooting class. And Zaiden earned his Blue rope by tying 14 knots from memory in 90 seconds.
Before dinner, our Troop was responsible for the Closing Flag Ceremony. Nash led the Troop, and everyone did a great job taking down and folding the flags. Mr. Finley and Jackson got to have a steak dinner during the Scoutmaster/SPL meeting. During open program time, several Scouts took advantage of the branding station to get an item branded with the camp logo. Mr. Mackey and Mr. Prebynski took part in the adult “Cowboy Action Shooting.” We ended the evening making s’mores and socializing in the mess hall.
Day 7 6/28/2024
A big change in the weather came in overnight with some rain and much colder air greeting us in the morning. The remaining brave souls were not deterred from earning the Polar Plunge badge by jumping in the pond one last time.
Successful Polar Plungers:
Bjorn Andrew
Vince Jackson
Carter Davis
Cooper Colin
Mr. Mackey Mr. Prebynski
After breakfast, the Scouts headed off to finish all their Merit Badge classes. Throughout the day, Bjorn, Jackson, and Carter were picked up by their parents. We closed out the week in camp with a closing campfire, with the Scouts from each Troop performing a skit. Our Troop did the Green Golfball skit. During the campfire awards, Zaiden received the blue rope award for completing CBB’s knot-tying challenge.
Day 8 6/29/2024
We all got up early at 5:30 AM on another cold morning to pack up our campsite. After, we got all packed up and checked out and we were on the road by 8:15 AM. Well, most of us; Daniel, Zaiden, and Zoehn extended their stay in Yellowstone for a few extra days. Our first stop was Cody, WY to fill up our gas tanks, and most of the Scouts got a treat from the gas station. The next stop was in Casper, WY and the Sam’s Club for lunch. After lunch, Eli led us in the traditional “Roses and Thorns” ceremony, then we were back on the road. Our last stop was in Cheyenne to top off our fuel tanks. We arrived back at the church at about 6:45 PM.
Total Miles Driven: 1293
We had a successful project Tenderfoot weekend with our goals to help the new scouts learn to be self sufficient when on a troop campout and to allow the older scouts an opportunity to further develop their teaching and leadership skills. This was Troop 640’s first campout with its new sister all girl troop.
Friday night went off great with the troop setting up at the group campsite at Bear Creek Lake Park, The scouts spent the evening hours playing shadow (a modified version of tag in the dark).
Saturday was busy, we marked off multiple Tenderfoot requirements (first aid, axe/saw/knife safety, basic knots, entry cooking skills , tent/camp set up and safety skills). For a service project, we picked up debris in a less visited part of the park. The afternoon was spent on a 5 mile hike where the new scouts learned basic orienteering skills. Dinner went well with the scouts doing a peach cobbler. Not to be outdone, the adults experimented with 2 different methods to cook brownies and managed to burn both batches. Oh, the high-risk high-reward joys of dutch oven cooking. The scouts again spent the evening hours playing shadow.
Sunday morning the troop was able to use the archery range (much appreciation to Mr. Strous, Mr. Strauss and Mr. Mackey for running the archery range).
I wouldn’t change a thing about the campout as everyone had numerous learning experiences.
Boy Troop
Eli, Nick, Liam, Luke, Alexander, Nash, Davis, Colin, Caleb And Connor
Girls Troop
Corri, Clark and Zoe
Adults
Tom, Keel, Cynde, Kathleen, Amanda and Brett
And photos have been uploaded to the website at the normal location: https://www.bsatroop640.com/photos/
The top ten things I learned on my final Klondike Derby as the Scoutmaster of Troop 640: <drumroll>
It takes more than two days to properly cook a raspberry pie.
An “Everything bagel” does not taste like octopus.
If you train really hard, you can improve your fire-starting skills by a factor of 38 in a year’s time. Or, y’know…if you’re just prepared.
BSA needs a tent rolling merit badge that teaches kids how to put a tent back into the bag it came in.
Late fees are non-negotiable.
When some tells you to meet them at the First Aid tent, be ready for anything.
Coke is better than Pepsi – sorry, it’s science.
People from Florida may not be genetically prepared to drive in Colorado snow.
Don’t let Scouts go camping when they’re sick.
And the number one thing I learned…
These boys always find a way to have fun!!
Thanks for filling my cup with laughter and perseverance.
This past weekend we branched out and attempted something the troop hasn’t done before – Ice Climbing at Camp Alexander! A great time was had by everyone who attended thanks to the amazing weather, challenging but fun Ice Climbing, relaxing ice fishing, physical ice hockey (in boots), and cooking! We departed the church around 6pm and arrived at Camp A (via the windy, “mountain” route) approximately 2 hours later with a fully loaded, extra grande Big Blue Trailer and 3 vehicles. All noises in the cars abruptly stopped when we rounded the bend at Camp A and the beautifully illuminated ice wall came into view – followed by in sync “wow’s” from the passengers. It was quite a sight to behold! We checked in and proceeded to unload our trailer to our spaces at Bunkhouse #5, #6, and #7. We set up patrol boxes so we were prepared for the next mornings meals and started a fire whilst enjoying our cracker barrel.
We retired around 10pm and set the alarms for 6:30am – giving us time to cook before our scheduled ice climbing at 8:00am. We enjoyed our meals and then started right into gearing up for our adventure. It was very advantageous to be literally next door to the gear bunkhouse so we could finish eating and start dressing at the same time. We saved the dish cleanup for after our climb. After getting all geared up and taught the ropes (literally and figuratively), we began our grande adventure! Everyone took turns cycling through climbing, belaying, and backup belaying and we spent a solid 2 hours going up and down the 10 various routes. Many Scouts (and even 3 of the 4 adults) made it to the top of at least one route. It’s not for the faint of heart yet our Scouts performed admirable – enough so that the guides remarked that we were one of the best crews they had seen on the ice!
After we were forced down due to time limits, we proceeded to clean up camp, make a quick lunch, then headed out to the frozen lake where we started ice fishing and hockey playing. Much to our surprise, Eli reeled in the first fish of the day – a grande rainbow trout coming in at a plump 16 inches. While we debated a meal change for dinner, we opted to let the big guy go and continued our luck later when Mr. Borstad caught another one almost as big as the first. Later on, Mr. Naber nabbed our third catch of the day while Mr. Bielkiewicz tried his hand at cross-checking Scouts on the hockey “rink.”
As the sun started to descend, we wrapped up the fun on the lake and headed back to camp to cook our meals. It was a pasta themed dinner – Mac N’ Cheese, Fettucine Alfredo, and Bow-Tie Pasta with Sausage, Peppers, and Onions in Vodka Cream sauce rounded out the 3 meals made. Mr. Borstad made a phenomenal double-dutch oven serving of cherry, chocolate cake/brownie goodness that everyone was able to enjoy. We all settled around the fire with our grande bellies before retiring after a long, fun day at 10pm.
Sunday was brief as we got up at 6:30am again, had quick breakfast, and packed up the trailer. We did our part by cleaning up the Scout restroom before Roses and Thorns and then heading back to the church. We arrived around 11:15am, unloaded the gear, and departed for home.
Thanks to everyone for attending this amazing adventure – attendees were:
Luke H. (SPL)
Alexander R.
Zack B.
Nash W.
Aidan S.
Caleb N.
Andrew N.
Damon B.
Connor L.
Eli S.
Bjorn B.
Adults:
Brett Borstad
Chris Naber
Jacob Bielkiewicz
Mike Bielkiewicz
And photos have been uploaded to the website at the normal location: https://www.bsatroop640.com/photos/
P.S. If anyone took home a purple, reusable bag that held some food in it (or anything else that isn’t yours), please bring it back to the meeting tomorrow to return it to it’s rightful owner. Thanks!
We had a wonderful time this past weekend on our annual Snow Sports Adventure to the Granby area. We departed the church at 5:58pm – two minutes ahead of schedule even though Mr. Bielkiewicz’s car needed a jump start. We headed to the tubing hill and spent over 2 hours zooming down the hill. This was well over the 1 hour we paid for, so a big thank you to the Fraser Tubing Hill – make sure to visit them if you are in the area (it’s the first hill, on your left, not the other one!).
We proceed to the Church of the Eternal Hills in Tabernash for our 2nd consecutive visit and it did not disappoint. We settled in and had cracker barrel before retiring for the night around midnight. We woke up at 7:30 and had breakfast burritos, pop tarts, and juice before packing up and heading the Granby Ranch ski area.
Even though there were only a few runs open, the weather was perfect and everyone had a great time, interrupted only by lunch in the lodge. Some Scouts skied the lone, long run between 25 and 31 times!!! We departed for home around 4:15pm and luckily had very little traffic, allowing us to pull into the church parking lot at 5:58pm. We had exactly 24 hours of fun! Thanks to the following for attending:
Caleb N. (co-SPL)
Zack B. (co-SPL)
Nash W.
Damon B.
Andrew N.
Cooper P.
Dalton M.
Ben T.
Liam H.
Jackson D.
Eli S.
And Mr. Naber and Mr. Bielkiewicz for attending, as well as Mr. Borstad for helping to set up logistics and Mr. Mackey for some free ski lessons ahead of time!
Photos will be added to the website soon!
